Piper sarmentosum

Piper sarmentosum
File:Piper sarmentosum.jpg
A Piper sarmentosum plant
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Magnoliids
Order:	Piperales
Family:	Piperaceae
Genus:	Piper
Species:	P. sarmentosum
Binomial name
Piper sarmentosum Roxb.

Piper sarmentosum is a plant in the Piperaceae family used in many Southeast Asian cuisines. The leaves are often confused with betel, but they lack the intense taste of the betel leaves and are significantly smaller.

Names

There is no "official" English name for it, but it is sometimes called wild betel. It is known as chaphlu (ชะพลู, pronounced [t͡ɕʰá.pʰlūː]) or cha phlu (ช้าพลู, pronounced [t͡ɕʰáː pʰlūː]) in Thai; phak i leut or pak eelerd (ຜັກອີ່ເລີດ) in Lao; and pokok kadok in Malay. In Vietnam, the local name of Piper lolot – lá lốt – is applied to P. sarmentosum also.

Geographic distribution

P. sarmentosum is found from the tropical areas of Southeast Asia, Northeast India and South China, and as far as the Andaman Islands.

In cuisine

P. sarmentosum leaves are sold in bunches and are usually eaten raw.

• In Thai cuisine, the leaves are used to wrap miang kham, a traditional snack; they are also one of the ingredients of the Kaeng khae curry of Northern Thailand. The curry is named after these leaves, which are known as khae in Northern Thailand.
• In Laotian cuisine, it is eaten as part of a salad.
• In Malay cuisine it is shredded for ulam, a type of Malay salad.

Traditional medicine

P. sarmentosum leaves are used in traditional Asian medicines. Chemical analysis has shown the leaves contain the antioxidant naringenin. Amides from P. sarmentosum fruit have been shown to have anti-tuberculosis and anti-plasmodial activities.